When ignorance not bliss: US politicians without borders

U.S. Rep Michele Bachmann (R-MN) speaks at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, California (Reuters / Robert Galbraith) / Reuters

Every four years, as another US presidential election comes around, along comes a new batch of candidates with dodgy foreign policy credentials. Their blunders have inspired endless jokes, but they also discredit America in the eyes of the world.

­From Palin’s famous: “You can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska,” to Michele Bachmann’s public support for waterboarding, some US politicians demonstrate a lack of basic knowledge of geography and international law.

RT’s correspondent Marina Portnaya reports on just how far this ignorance can spread, and what can be done to curb its tragic outcomes.